Meet The UK’s Newest Pedigree Dogs

The number of pedigree dog breeds recognised in the UK is set to
rise to 215 when the Kennel Club recognises the Hungarian Pumi and
the Griffon Fauve de Bretagne, from 1st April 2014.

They are two of just five new breeds to have been recognised in
the past five years. Most recently the Kennel Club announced the
recognition of the Picardy Sheepdog, also from 1st April 2014,
having recognised the Turkish Kangal Dog as a separate breed and
also the Portuguese Pointer in 2013. Prior to that, the Greater
Swiss Mountain Dog was the last dog breed to be recognised, back in
October 2008.

The Griffon Fauve de Bretagne will be classified in the Hound
group and the Hungarian Pumi will be added to the Pastoral group.
They do not currently have breed standards so cannot yet be shown
at breed shows in the UK.

In other changes announced by the Kennel Club, the Beauceron will
be transferred from the Import Register to the Breed Register and
re-classified from the Working group to the Pastoral group from 1st
July 2014. The Kooikerhondje was re-classified from the Gundog
Group to the Utility Group on 1st January 2014.

The continual rise in foreign breeds comes as some of our oldest
native breeds continue to decline. When the first ever Kennel Club
stud book was produced in 1874, just 43 breeds were listed,
including many of those that are now considered to be vulnerable,
such as the Dandie Dinmont Terrier, Clumber Spaniel, Otterhound and
Skye Terrier.

This year, there will be three new breeds competing in their own
classes at Crufts for the very first time: the Eurasier, the
Catalan Sheepdog and the Turkish Kangal Dog.

Caroline Kisko, Kennel Club Secretary, said: "We look forward to
recognising three new breeds in April and are lucky to have such a
diverse range of breeds in this country, so that all potential dog
owners can find a companion that is just right for them.

"The process of being recognised as a pedigree dog breed by the
Kennel Club takes several generations of dogs, but once we
recognise a breed it means that we know that it has a reliable
lineage that will give people a dog with predictable
characteristics, in terms of temperament and exercise and grooming
needs. This helps dogs to find loving homes with the right
owners.

"Whilst we now have many wonderful breeds in this country
unfortunately, a number of our most historic British breeds are no
longer in fashion and face disappearing from our streets, because
they have been forgotten and we hope that events such as Crufts
will really help people see the wide range of breeds that
exist."